| Product: |
X - Kylie Minogue |
| Date: |
07/01/08 (166 review reads) |
| Rating: |
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Advantages: Great tunes, good mix
Disadvantages: No real "feel" - very mixed
Three years after her last album, Kylie Minogue's tenth studio album is a poignant milestone in the musical career of a lady who few predicted would maintain any longevity. After a much-publicised battle against breast cancer, X does indeed mark the spot for one of the popular musical scenes most prevalent performers.
The production team behind X reads like a who's who of recent chart success, with contributions from Cathy Dennis, Calvin Harris, Eg White, Guy Chambers and the Freemasons, all of whom have either collaborated on previous Minogue success stories or had strong chart hits in their own right. Ever commercially-aware, it would seem that Kylie has made a point of surrounding herself with a cornucopia of famous names, intent on producing a disc of varied styles and tastes. There were casualties on the way too. Scottish musician Mylo's three recorded tracks were dumped by the record label without warning and Mylo remains mightily miffed. Nonetheless, the finished product is surely one of her most instant albums to date, even if it doesn't quite scale the heights of her early Parlophone material.
X boasts the widest array of sounds and styles of any Kylie album to date. Pure pop, electro pop, hip hop and R & B all feature in varying quantities and the discs yields surprises for fans and newcomers alike. The decision to vary the list of producers and sounds at times threatens to prevent the album having any real flow or tone but the experimental appeal is hard to escape and certainly proves a versatility that critics may otherwise have denied. Kish Mauve's "2 Hearts" is almost certainly the album's most unusual track, a darkish blend of club music not unlike the sound of Goldfrapp that arguably takes some getting used to.
Much of the album is more conventional, with some obvious candidates for single releases. The Harris produced tracks stand out as the strongest, particularly with "In My Arms", a gorgeously uplifting, retro pop tune that reminds us why Minogue is the princess of pop. The Freemasons track, "The One", is also predictably radio-friendly and not unlike "I Believe In You" from the Ultimate Kylie album. Bloodshy and Avant's two collaborations are unwelcome, the bleepy, stop/start style out of sorts with Kylie's voice and far too similar to the Britney sound to sound particularly fresh here. A more unusual collaboration comes with Greg Kurstin, who previously worked with Red Hot Chilli Peppers, and it shows. From the wistful, guitar-led intro to "No More Rain", it's clear that Kylie is once again trying her pop / rock mode, notably more successfully than in her Impossible Princess days it must be said. Eg White's only contribution (Cosmic) is a joint effort with Minogue herself, but is probably the weakest track on the standard album and tries too hard to sound like Natalie Imbruglia.
Stand out tracks are the aforementioned In Your Arms, The One and the forthcoming single, "Wow", a superbly camp hi-energy outing that will almost certainly re-energise interest in the singer amongst those who found Two Hearts too experimental.
The standard thirteen-track album was released in 2007. Two additional tracks were included on the iTunes release (Magnetic Electric and White Diamond) and there is also a sixteenth track that can be downloaded at www.kylie.com if you insert the album into your CD-Rom drive. A further four tracks were recorded but not included. I Don't Know What It Is and King or Queen were included on the 2 Hearts single and Fall For You will be included as the B-side on Wow.
The standard thirteen tracks work surprisingly well and accommodate many moods. There's enough variety for this album to work at different times and Kylie has never sounded more confident in what she's doing (although her voice is so often mixed around with that it would be difficult to acknowledge any new vocal capabilities.) X is an extremely slick production, with very few weak links, in spite of a surprisingly lukewarm reception since its release. X is probably not as strong as Fever nor is it as infectious as Light Years, but is nonetheless a welcome return to form. It looks as though the Kylie bandwagon is set to continue rolling.
Summary: Competent 10th album from the everlasting Aussie
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